Carrot Rice/Pulao

Carrot rice or carrot pulao. A quick and delicious one pot meal. Very easy to make. This rice is a hot favourite in my home because of it’s lovely colour and yummy taste.

This week’s #Foodiemonday #bloghop theme is rice.
My contribution is carrot rice or pulao.

Rice with a beautiful red colour and with all the goodness of carrots.

Recipe

Basmati rice  – 1 cup

Ghee or clarified butter  – 1 and 1/2 tablespoon

Cumin seeds  – 1/2  teaspoon

Cardamom  – 4 broken or crushed

Cloves  — 3 crushed

Cinnamon  – a small stick broken

Bay leaf  – 1

Salt to taste

Sugar  – 1 teaspoon or to taste optional

Water – 1and 1/2 cup

Carrot  – 4-5  chopped or grated

Tomato  – 3 chopped

Salt to taste

Oil  – 2 tablespoon

Onion  – 2-3 large finely chopped

Ginger  – 1 inch piece

Garlic – 3 pods

Kashmiri red chilli powder  – 2 teaspoon

Cumin powder  – 1 teaspoon

Garam masala powder  – 1/2 teaspoon optional

Corriander or mint leaves – 1 teaspoon chopped

METHOD

Grind the carrots. You can use little water to make smooth paste.
Grind tomato, ginger and garlic. Keep aside.

Heat ghee or clarified butter in a pressure cooker. Add cumin seeds, bay leaf, crushed cardamom, cinnamon and cloves. Let the cumin seeds crackle. Then add rice. Stir gently.

Add salt and sugar. Mix well and add water. Close the lid. Switch off the flame after 1 whistle. Let the pressure cooker cool down.
Fluff the rice gently. Discard the bay leaf.

Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a nonstick pan. Add chopped onion. Fry till its starts to change colour. Add ginger, garlic and tomato paste. Saute till the raw smell goes away. Add the carrot paste.

Saute and add salt, cumin powder, garam masala powder and kashmiri red chilli powder. If you are making for kids skip the red chilli powder.

Add chopped coriander leaves or mint leaves.
Saute till the mixture dried up completely.
Now add the rice. Mix gently.

Carrot rice or pulao is ready. Garnish with fried cashew nuts and coriander leaves or mint leaves.
Serve hot with any raita, chutney or salad.M

Thandai Flavoured Fruit Punch/Mocktail

Happy Holi in advance.
Holi is a spring festival, also known as the festival of colours or the festival of sharing love.

On this colourful festival of Holi thrill your guests with this non alcoholic mocktail drink.
Fruit punch made of orange, pomegranate, grapes, lemon and thandai.

Thandai is a traditional drink for Holi.
Thandai, is a cold drink prepared with a mixture of almonds, fennel seeds, magaztari seeds, rose petals, pepper, vetiver seeds, cardamom, saffron, milk .

Thandai is a refreshing summer drink. It helps to cool the body, give freshness and energy and have many other health benefits.

This post is going to be a part of #Foodiemonday #bloghop theme is #FestivalofColour

Presenting the colour red.
Red is the color of fire and blood, so it is associated with energy, strength, power, determination as well as passion, desire, and love.

The tangy taste of orange combined with pomegranate, grapes, lemon and thandai makes the drink super yummy and healthy too.

Recipe

Pomegranate juice – 1 cup

Orange juice – 1 cup

Grape juice – 1/2 cup

Lemon juice – 1 tablespoon

Powdered sugar – 2 tablespoon or to taste

Thandai syrup – 2-3 teaspoon

Ice cubes as require

Method

Wet the rim of the glass that you are going to serve the drink.
Spread the powdered sugar in a plate and dip the glass rim in it so that the rim gets coated with powdered sugar. Keep it aside.

Combine all the juices. Add powdered sugar and thandai syrup. Mix well.
Strain the mixture.

Pour in the glass you prepared for serving. Garnish with pomegranate seeds,orange and lemon wedges.

Serve chilled.
Enjoy this mocktail with the goodness of fruits on this Holi and beat the heat.

Oats Thandai Nankhatai

Nanakhatai with oats and thandai.
Nankhatai are shortbread biscuits popular in India and Pakistan. The word Nankhatai is derived from Persian word Naan meaning bread and Khatai from an Afghan word meaning Biscuit.

I have made it with thandai.
Thandai is traditionally accociated with holi festival, a spring festival known as the festival of colours or the festival of sharing love.

Thandai is a cold drink with lots of health benefits. Prepared with a mixture of  almonds, fennel seeds, magaztari seeds, rose petals, pepper, vetiver seeds, cardamom, saffron, milk and sugar. Its very useful to be fresh and cool in summer.
I have used store bought thandai syrup.

This post is going to be a part of #Foodiemonday #Bloghop event. #Theme is fusion recipe using thandai. #Fusionthandairecipes.

Fusion cuisine is cuisine that combines elements of different culinary traditions. Cuisines of this type are not categorized according to any one particular cuisine style .

So presenting all time favourite nankhatai in a different taste.

Recipe

All purpose flour or maida – 1 cup

Gram flour or chickpea flour or besan – 1\4 cup

Oats – 1\4 cup powdered

Baking soda – 1\4 teaspoon

Baking powder – 1 teaspoon

Ghee or clarified butter – 1\2 cup

Powderd sugar – 1\2 cup

Thandai syrup – 1\4 cup or as require to make a soft dough

Method

Grind the oats and keep aside.
Cream together sugar and ghee or clarified butter. Add flour along with baking powder, soda, gram flour or besan and oats powder.

Knead to a smooth dough. Add thandai slowly while making the dough. Add as require to make a soft and smooth dough. I have used 1\4 cup. Make small balls and press lightly with your thumb.

Arrange in the greased tray keeping 1 inch distance. It will be doubled when baked.

Bake at 180° in a preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. Timing depends on oven. Every oven takes different time. Check it after 10 minutes. Bake until cookies starts to turn light golden colour.

Colour should be very light. Don’t overbake.
Allow the nankhatai to cool before serving.

Cookies will be soft when hot but they will turn crisp as they cool down. Store in an airtight container for further use.

Enjoy the crispy crunchy thandai nankhatai with your tea or coffee.

Baked Vegetables

Baked vegetables.
Mixed vegetables with wonderful flavour without much calories. Just cook the  vegetables on high flame, then bake with generous amount of bread crumbs, grated cheese and seasoning of your choice. Enjoy the yummy crunchy baked vegetables.

This post is a part of #Foodiemonday #Bloghop. This week’s theme is any type of microwave cooking. Grilling, baking or cooking.

I have decided to share a very easy to cook and yummy baked vegetables. Serve it as a side dish or enjoy a bowlful of this healthy and delicious vegetables in  breakfast.

Recipe

Green peas  – 1 cup

Chopped carrot  – 1 cup

Potato  – 1

Chopped beans – 1 cup

Onions  – 3-4 finely chopped

Tomatoes  – 2 chopped

Capsicum  – 1 large chopped

Garlic  – 3 pods

Green chilli  – 1-2 finely chopped

Ginger  – 1/2 inch piece

Oil or butter – 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon

Cumin powder  – 1 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Black pepper powder  – 1 teaspoon

Turmeric powder  – 1/2 teaspoon

Bread crumbs  – 1 and 1/2 cup

Grated cheese  – 1 cup

Tomato sauce  – 1 teaspoon optional

Method

Peel the potatoes and carrots. Clean, wash and chop all the vegetables in small pieces and keep aside.

Grind tomatoes garlic and ginger.
Heat oil in a pan. You can use butter or olive oil too. Add chopped onion and green chilli. Saute till the onions becomes translucent.

Add tomato ginger garlic paste. Saute and add all the vegetables, spices and salt. Mix well and cover the pan. Cook until done. Keep stirring.

Add tomato sauce, mix and let the vegetables dried up.
Pour the vegetables in a baking tray. Label with a spoon.

Sprinkle bread crumbs generously all over the vegetables. I have used home made bread crumbs. Toasted brown bread in a toaster. Then ground the toasted bread. You can use white bread too.

Sprinkle grated cheese all over the vegetables. Cover the vegetables completely with bread crumbs then cheese.

Garnish with tomato and onion slices.
Sprinkle one teaspoon oil on them.
I have sprinkled oregano over it. You can sprinkle mix herb or chaat masala  too. Sprinkle any herb or spices of your choice.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180°  for 15 to 20 minutes or until the cheese turns light brown.

Serve hot with roti/Indian bread, paratha, naan or toasted bread. Or serve bowlful of this healthy and yummy baked vegetables in breakfast. A perfect snack for kiddos.

Microwave Mushroom

Microwave mushroom
Very easy to make and in a healthy way. Just marinate and cook.

Mushrooms are full of protein, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, antibiotics and antioxidants. Its protects us from diseases and infections.

Its helps in weight loss too. Increases the strength of immune system and lower the body’s cholesterol levels.

Recipe

Mushroom  – 250 gram

Capsicum  – 1 large cubed

Onions  – 3-4 cubed

Thick or hung curd – 2 tablespoon

Garlic paste  – 1 teaspoon

Ginger paste  – 1 teaspoon

Red chilli powder  – 1 teaspoon or as much your spice tolerance

Black pepper powder  – 1 teaspoon

Cumin powder  – 1 teaspoon

Garam masala powder  – 1/4 teaspoon optional

Turmeric powder  – 1/4 teaspoon

Salt to taste

Mustard oil  – 1 tablespoon

Method

Clean and wash the mushrooms. If you have small mushrooms keep whole but if large make  them half.

Mix ginger garlic paste, salt,  all the spices and oil in the well beaten curd.

Marinate mushrooms, capsicum and onions in this curd mixture for 1/2 to 1 hour in a microwave safe bowl.

Now microwave them for 6-8 minutes on full power. Time depends on oven. Check and cook in microwave for 2 minutes more if require.

Mushrooms release water. So I dried up the mushrooms in a pan on high flame.

When the mushrooms completely done in microwave check it. If you like pour the mushrooms in a pan and dried up on full flame.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve as a side dish with roti/Indiana flat bread, naan, paratha or toasted bread.